THE GIN QUEEN

Af­ter liv­ing in Lon­don, Lucy Beard and her hus­band, Leigh Lisk, re­lo­cated back to the Mother City.They in­vested in two gin stills (named Mil­dred and Maude) and re­fur­bished a run­down ware­house in Salt River into the city’s first gin dis­tillery, Hope on Hop­kins, where they sell craft vodka and gin. MC:Why do you think mi­cro-brew­ing and craft drinks are so pop­u­lar? Peo­ple are in­creas­ingly aware of the prove­nance of their food and drink. Craft brew­ing and dis­till­ing is part of this trend – it’s a mix of peo­ple want­ing to know where their prod­ucts come from, and that it is ar­ti­san. MC:What makes your gin dif­fer­ent? Our gin is clas­sic with a twist of South Africa, as we use buchu to com­ple­ment the cit­rus and ju­niper and then blend it down to bot­tling strength us­ing Ta­ble Moun­tain spring wa­ter. MC:What is your cock­tail of choice? A dry mar­tini, served with a twist (and most def­i­nitely stirred not shaken).